Etude No. 106 in B major

Description

Prelude and choral

Etude for both hands which both particpate to melody and accompaniment.

The utility of this kind of difficulty, which we are giving here for the second time, is so recognized by the skilled teachers, that treated in various ways, it would have seemed enough for a piano teaching course, if we had not imposed on ourselves the task of understanding in it all the kinds of music that the instrument contains. Indeed, no passage develops more the various movements of the hand, does not give as much elasticity and flexibility to the fingers, does not make them any more independent of each other, finally none makes the hand as skilful as the one which makes each of them make a melody carrying its accompaniment with the same hand. The student will impose on himself the task of performing each part with the same perfection as if there were only one part to do, and he will play the accompaniment of the melody with the right hand so perfectly tied, that he will be in control of the fine dynamics that this piece requires: the expression will be soft and smooth, and nothing too brilliant must harm the feeling of melancholy that it expresses there; but each note of melody will be maintained during all its value, and articulated strongly enough to make it stand out on the accompaniment. (H. de Montgeroult)